Mad cow disease puts Brazil’s exports to China on notice

The Brazilian government is investigating the occurrence of an atypical case of “mad cow disease” (bovine spongiform encephalopathy) in an animal in the state of Pará.

Tests carried out in Brazil showed positive results for the atypical variety of the disease. Now, the Ministry of Agriculture is awaiting the counterproof sent to Canada to be ready.

If the Canda results turn positive, beef exports to China should likely be suspended. The existence of a health protocol signed between the two countries in June 2015 obliges Brazil to communicate any cases of the disease to Beijing and promote a self-embargo on shipments, with the immediate suspension of exports.

The embargo is temporary, but its duration is indefinite – and this is where industries such as JBS, Marfrig, and Minerva grow concerned. The last time a case was confirmed in Brazil was in 2021. Exports were suspended between September and December of that year, with the average export price of beef falling by 20%.

Two years earlier, in 2019, another atypical case was confirmed, and the protocol was also put into action – but, on that occasion, the embargo lasted only 13 days without significant damage to the industry. Slaughterhouses and large producers expect that, unlike in 2019, the ban will be much shorter. From a health point of view, atypical cases of BSE do not pose any risk to public health.

From an economic standpoint, they should not pose damages if it weren’t for the poorly executed sanitary agreement signed with China in 2015 – which was never renegotiated – forcing Brazil to self-embargo.

Please see below Brazil’s exports of beef to China from Jan 2019 to Dec 2022, according to the DataLiner foreign trade data platform.

Beef exports to China | Jan 2019 – Dec 2022 | WTMT

Source: DataLiner (click here to request a demo)

Stop selling to China becomes a problem, especially for slaughterhouses with operations restricted to Brazil. Last year, shipments totaled 2.15 million tons, of which 1.23 million – 57% of the total – went to the Chinese market.

Source: Brazil Journal

To read the original reporting, please visit: https://braziljournal.com/caso-de-vaca-louca-ameaca-exportacao-de-carne-bovina-para-a-china/ 

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